Isle of Man election: Kevin Oliphant-Smith - standing for Douglas North
- Published
The Isle of Man general election to appoint 24 members of the House of Keys takes place on 23 September.
There are two seats available in each of the island's 12 constituencies, and the successful candidates will serve in the positions until 2026.
Kevin Oliphant-Smith (independent) is one of four candidates standing in the constituency of Douglas North.
BBC Isle of Man asked Mr Oliphant-Smith three key questions ahead of polling day.
The other candidates standing for the constituency are David Ashford, Ralph Peake and John Wannenburgh.
What are your top three priorities as a candidate?
To fully represent the people of Douglas North, to be available at all times, and to be transparent.
What is the biggest issue facing the island in the next five years and how would you tackle it?
Well, there's more than one big issue, there's lots of big issues. I would say one of the big issues is attracting specialists to the island, such as skilled workers, teachers, doctors, and retaining those people here. Giving them a reason to actually come here, that's probably the biggest issue.
First of all you need to tackle the housing problem because people aren't going to stay here, or come here, if they can't afford to actually get on the housing ladder. That's a big chunk of a person's salary, so that needs to be dealt with first and foremost.
Secondly, introduce on-island progressive training for those individuals, so they don't need to keep going off-island to update their qualifications and do further training and education.
Why are you the right candidate?
I feel like I'm the right candidate because I am just an ordinary person.
I have worked across several government departments and I've got the inner working knowledge of how those governments operate, from a structural point of view.
I work from a common sense approach, and I've got the skills and experience from working in several sectors.
The other candidates standing for the constituency are: